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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. can — a tin
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mine — for digging
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. cold — not warm
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — for pool
  14. press — to push
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. can — to be able to
  17. cue — a hint
  18. can — a tin
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. press — newspapers
  24. press — a publisher

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com